How Yoga Put Savings in my Wallet

Each week I look forward to my evening yoga class. As each teacher I've had has told me, yoga will become a part of your life, you will take your practice with you off the mat.

And indeed that is true. I found out how true in a shopping mall.

Fitting in a practice takes some juggling. We are running between our expectations and our goals and rarely have time to relax. But Yoga put savings in my wallet one day and let me tell you how.

Before I head to my yoga class, I often walk for half an hour in a shopping mall across the street from where the yoga class is held. A January clearance sale (don't you love those 70% off signs?) in one of my favourite clothing stores stopped me in my brisk walk.

By the time I walked out of the store I was "richer" and could Celebrate! If you have been following along, you will know that Celebrate! is my word for this year.

In this store, I met a very assertive salesperson and because of what I have learned through yoga, I was able to walk away peacefully. We've all experienced someone like this, someone who won't stop talking, who follows you around constantly making suggestions. So annoying.

I'm a minimalist, I said. I choose carefully. She had not heard of Courtney Carver's Project 33. Wearing 33 items or less for 3 months would not make sense to this salesperson.

Oh, a person can have more than ONE pair of black pants, she said as she thrust another pair towards me. I'll just put this in the changing room for you, it will be PERFECT with whatever else you have at home.

And so it went on, and on, and on.

Don't get me wrong, I love a good sale. But minimalism and yoga have taught me about simple things. About calm, and making choices. About considering and not rushing decisions. About knowing when you are right to walk away.

I did try on a number of pairs of pants, all in various shades of black! But as I kept my eye on the time, I knew that I was already too late to get to my yoga class. We don't always have time to decide on our own time. (Tweet This)

I need time to think and decide, I said to her. Which we all know are words that no salesperson ever wants to hear.

Not long ago, I would have struggled with saying that. I would have opened my wallet and bought at least one thing just to get out of the store, or so I didn't appear rude, or unappreciative of her attention. And I, like many of us would have ended up with one more pair of black pants!

That day, although I missed my yoga class, I was able to walk away "richer". Not only in my wallet but also in my soul. 

I was able to acknowledge who I was inside and to not need more outside. (Tweet This)